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Crown Prince Ranier
Born at Schloss Nicolas on July 7th 1942, Josef Anton Ranier Carlucci was born amidst the Nazi occupation of Aurianus. As the only child of Crown Prince Florian and Regenta Astrid, great things were expected of the young prince from an early age. His parents' noble efforts during World War II had earned them global recognition and admiration, and it was widely expected that their progeny would follow in their exemplary footsteps. Raised in Auriana until he reached the age of 17, he was then sent to Oxford University, arguably the finest institution in Europe, where he read Ancient History graduating with first class honours. No sooner had Ranier graduated than his father abdicated the throne, citing his desire to 'take it easier' after 23 years as head of state, having negotiated the micro-state through a World War and borne witness to the ensuing Cold War that required Aurianus to choose whether or not to align with the West or the Eastern Bloc. Secure in the knowledge he had done his best by Aurianus, he poured his energies into ensuring the successful election of his son to the office Crown Prince. The election was held on October 1st 1962, and Ranier won by a landslide, beating his nearest competitor, Stefanie Carlucci-Cortez by a ratio of 4 votes to 1. His term of office began with an auspicious start, successfully lobbying for a seat in the UN and fostering closer relations with the Middle East, however, his popularity would soon begin to decline. Investment in Aurianan services and infrastructure all but ceased after a massive round of tax cuts in 1966, whilst corporation tax was increased to the point where Aurianan corporations were almost unable to compete. Conversely no tax was applied to imported goods, and the market was flooded with products and services originating from the Middle East. By 1981 91% of all goods consumed in Aurianus originated from this region, whilst 74% of that total originated from Syria. Ranier's foreign policy decisions were equally questionable, severing ties with most western nations and instead fostering relations with Syria, Jordan, Iran, Iraq, Egypt and Albania. The nation quickly came to become regarded as the 'black sheep' of the west, and international investment in Aurianus eventually dried up. Ranier drew intense criticism for his choice of allies, most of which were regarded as having a terrible record on human rights issues. Critics began to suggest that Ranier was uninterested in leading Aurianus, but rather treated it as his personal piggybank, 'selling it down the river' in order to make a 'quick buck' in the Middle East. The situation became progressively worse throughout the late nineties, and by the turn of the century, Ranier's approval ratings stood at just 14%. In 2006 The Auriana Tribune published a story linking Ranier to the Syrian National Oil Company (SNOC) which suggested that he had been on their payroll since the early 1970s, and that he had taken an active role in reducing Aurianus and several of the Balkan nations to nothing more than mere client states of the Syrian government and SNOC. The article was extremely damaging, however Ranier was able to gag the newspaper from reporting further by successfully suing the publication for slander in the Aurianan High Court, the composition of which, as had traditionally been the case, was selected by the Crown Prince/Princess in its entirety. Events, however, came to a head in March 2009, when 27 Lebanese refugees seeking asylum arrived in Aurianus after the Austrian immigration authorities refused to admit them. The immigrants were wanted by the Syrian government on dubious treason charges, and a request for extradition was immediately issued. Crown Prince Rainier granted the request and the refugees promptly 'disappeared' upon arrival in Syria. Despite Ranier's close relationship with Syria the populace had expected the Crown Prince to allow the immigrants to state their case and make an appeal at an immigration tribunal as was normally the case. These events were met with much shock and criticism amongst the populace and on the global stage. Two months later it emerged that Crown Prince Rainier had been granted a 35% share in the Syrian National Oil Company worth in excess of 36 billion Euros. Widely perceived as an act of gross corruption, and facing a growing tide of dissent in the Senate, Ranier began positioning himself to invoke the 'royal prerogative' and grant himself emergency powers. On the evening of June 13th 2009 Crown Prince Rainier convened a special session of the Senate, and it was widely anticipated that this session would be the last sitting of the 47th Senate. During his initial address, at precisely 7:33pm a gunshot was heard from high within the chamber. The bullet stuck Crown Prince Rainier directly through the heart killing him instantly. Despite the best efforts of the Aurianan police department the assassin remained unidentified and was never bought to justice. Some journalists and commentators posited theories that Aurianan government officials had arranged the assassination or deliberately protected the identity of the assassin, although no claims have ever been proven to date. Category:Princes